Michigan State basketball players enjoy the final seconds of their 58-43 win over Wisconsin on March 7, 2013, at the Breslin Center in East Lansing.

Written by

Michigan State men's basketball will open the Big Ten with a New Year's Eve date at Penn State and finish March 9 at Ohio State, before a Big Ten Tournament from March 13-16 that returns to Indianapolis this season.

In between, there are tons of big games and another difficult overall league slate for the Spartans. Other marquee dates include Jan. 4 at Indiana; Jan. 7 vs. Ohio State; Jan. 25 vs. Michigan (ESPN's "GameDay" main event); Feb. 9 at Wisconsin; and Feb. 23 at U-M.

The Spartans' "one plays" will make their title chase challenging. MSU plays Wisconsin and Purdue on the road only, and ...